The first Christmas that Chad and I were dating, both of us had absolutely no idea what to get for each other. We’d only been together a few months, we were both in school and neither of us had a ton of disposeable income, and looking back now, we were still in the very early stages of getting to know each other. So, basically, the odds were stacked against us for picking out the perfect gift.

BUT. Despite those very significant hurdles — I knocked it out of the park. Seriously. For that first Christmas, I got Chad the cutest, preppiest, most adorable belt — I know it’s a little crazy to get that excited over a belt, but it was navy blue and embroidered with little red lobsters and just worked perfectly for him. He still has it, and still wears it a couple of times every months. Years later, it’s still a major staple of his wardrobe.

So I have a lot of love for the store where I bought it — Vineyard Vines[1]. And when that same store so kindly offered to send me a dress for summer, I knew I had to pick out something equally timeless and classic. Not at all difficult — this dress will easily be worn for many years to come! I love that preppy style isn’t so focused on trends, so your pieces get some extra longevity and they work for so many different ages — this dress will be just as pretty and stylish years from now as it is today!

(What did he get for me, you ask? Actually he did pretty well too — a bunch of thoughtful, really sweet gifts like a DVD of a concert we’d one to on one of our first dates, and a little pillow embroidered with the Texas flag, which sits in our bedroom to this day. Apparently he was planting the seed of us moving to Texas from day one!)